Practically
all casinos have a limit to what they will pay out
for any particular round of play. For example, if
the maximum payout is $25,000, then a player who has
bet $100 on each betting circle and has been dealt
a royal flush would only be paid $25,000, instead
of the correct $300,000. Even if he had only bet $10
on each circle, a more likely scenario, he would not
get $30,000 and so would be $5,000 short of the correct
payout. Therefore, it's important to know just what
the maximum payout is in any casino where you play
Let It Rides. There should be a sign at the table
indicating the maximum payout. If you can't find the
information there, ask the dealer or floor man and
bet accordingly.

An easy
way to calculate the payment you'll receive for a
royal flush is simply to divide the maximum payout
by 3,000. If the payout is $30,000> that's easy-$10
is the most you should bet for a correct payout. If
the maximum payout is the more usual $25,000, then
dividing this by 3,000 gives you $8.33. In order to
receive a correct royal flush payout you shouldn't
wager more than $8 in any betting circle. Don't be
shy when asking about the maximum payout-it can even
be less than $25,000, all the way down to $10,000.
It may also be as high as $100,000 at the Horseshoe
in downtown Las Vegas.

What should -you do if you are about to sit down at
a Let It Rides games and find that the maximum payout
is only $10.000 with a required minimum bet of $5.
Don't sit down. Find a casino that offers the optimum
value for your wagers.

Categorizing
Opponents

A
rational player tends to make decisions based on ideas
about his chances of winning money. He may be making
mistakes and may have bad judgment about his money-winning
potential, but winning money is his goal. An irrational
player makes decisions based on emotional needs, rather
than on financial considerations.

Deal with categories of players do so along only two
dimensions: tight/loose and aggressive/passive. In
fact, one book, The Psychology of Poker (2000) by
Alan Shoonmaker, is devoted entirely to this two-dimensional
analysis of players. But, like a two-dimensional model
of space, a two-dimensional model of poker players
simply lacks depth. It's a superficial view with only
superficial usefulness.

The Psychology of Poker isn't really about the psychology
of poker. It presents a framework for categorizing
players as aggressive/passive or tight/loose. It's
a standard framework, one that almost all poker writers
use. Shoonmaker borrows from the literature on management
styles and takes the standard stereotypical poker
player categories further than most. You might say
he takes it too far. His focus on the individual opponent
helps somewhat on how to react to a loose player as
an isolated opponent, but doesn't help much in showing
things such as how to adjust to having many loose
callers acting before you (position).